Roman Holiday

It is a city embraced by the history, a place where you stand in the ancient ruins and fascinated by the past glory. Yet the modern Romans have a life style that I admittedly envy. I was certainly overwhelmed, after walking for two hours in the 36 degree heat, and all of sudden, in the middle of the busy road, I saw this giant amphitheatre there. The sheer scale catches your eyes, but it is the complexity of the building and the thoughts what had happened here make you really wonder. The fearless (or rather frightened) gladiators, the fearful and agitated animals were set on the stage and the privileged crowd were sitting there and being entertained by the fight between the live and death. That would have been such a visually disturbing scene. The forum, with arches, temples and monuments built in a square stretching for a mile, and sadly it is only ruins. When I was there, it was sunset and I was truly amazed by what I saw. The ancient ruins, painted by the warm glow of sunlight, looked stunningly beautiful and surreal. For a moment, I was deeply indulged.

That was definitely the highlights of my day two in Rome, but I was also very delighted by the riverside Trastevere too. It is a fashionable residential area, a lovely blend of old buildings, small squares, local shops, restaurants and cafes. Having stuffed myself with lots of gelato, pasta, cheap but fine house wine, I took a stroll in the neighbourhood, all restaurants and bars were busy, people sat outside enjoying the summer evening blessed by nice cool breeze. And then in a little square, where they had set up some books stalls and a small stage, there was a guy playing electronic guitar. Very nice acoustics, I thought, and noticed there were a big screen set up on the stage and it read “La Notte di Q”. I wonder if it is a movie or a musical… Very vaguely I remember Notte means night in Italian, so it would be “The night of Q”. I was quite intrigued and tempted to stay and watch but then it was late in the evening and I was exhausted from the 8 mile walk during the day.

I found Spanish steps a bit disappointing and trevi fountain too crowded. Although I do love the fountains they have all round in Rome, such a nice treat when you splash some cold water on your face during a hot summer day in Rome. The Sistine Chapel inside Vatican museum is a real gem but moderated by other treasures in the museum. I just love Michelangelo and his devotion to the ceiling paintings. In some way, I always think artists (painters, musicians alike) live in a wonderful world that none of us boring corporate people could experience. It is a never land built for the pure mind and sensitive heart.